Home

Advertisement

Customize
02 November 2007 @ 05:53 pm
November 2, 2007  
Uploaded the final website today.
I discovered that the forms did not work properly in Internet Explorer; they would not take the viewed to the correct link after being clicked on. This is likely due to a minor coding error that Mozilla Firefox is able to detect and correct automatically.

After a considerable amount of time and research, I eventually added extra links for IE users as well as a new note concerning the issue to the FAQ section of the website. Hopefully this will not have a great detrimental effect on user experience.

Hope for the best.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
30 October 2007 @ 09:21 am
October 30, 2007  
Completed the final website design today. Much nondescript happenings that fail to make noteworthy presence followed. Dummy forms, mapped images and the rather fraudulent "forum" are the most salient aspects of the website.

Most importantly however, was a change in focus from the stylus to the online, multi-user capabilities as the product's flagship features. I felt that marketing and promoting the online features would be a more readily accepted and appreciated value in the eyes of the general audience. Much more appeal and promise lies in the potential of the multi-user sessions than the extra precision lent by the stylus.

We shall see. (actually, I hope I don't)

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
20 October 2007 @ 04:24 pm
October 20, 2007  
The presentation went badly. No surprise there.

I do, however, need to rethink my target audience. The additional features in the program have made it considerably more complex than a generic shared whiteboard program, and more akin to a multi-user Photoshop.

My apparent options are either to change the program or change the user group. Changing the user group and target audience appears to be the more appropriate and conventional option.

The interface and design must be reworked to accommodate for these new changes.

That is all.
-S
 
Leave a comment
 
13 October 2007 @ 08:13 pm
October 13, 2007  
The previous website for iteration 2 was rephrased and lobotomized to create the speech and presentation slides. Hopefully this will not lead to a re-enactment of last presentation's mediocre and lackluster speech.

The newer, more 'professional' website for the final iteration was also completed. This is only a template and was based on the existing site design. It incorporates the same header image and php menu layout, but is brighter and less crowded. It also presents a more simplistic and sophisticated facade, more appropriate for marketing a commercial product. This template will hopefully be used to complete the final design stage at a later date.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
04 October 2007 @ 10:12 am
October 4, 2007  
The website for iteration 2 of the project was uploaded. Links were tweaked and corrected and the php menus were added.

An oversight in the navigation menu (where the page looked for images locally, hence requiring each subdirectory to have the images) was fixed.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
27 September 2007 @ 02:00 pm
September 27, 2007  
The new interface design was completed today. This new design incorporated that strengths of the previous design, as well as the virtues and design changed extolled in the previous entry. This new interface is far simpler and offers larger icons and menus for a greater use of use with the stylus. Several mockups, both of the interface and it's intrinsic menus were created.

The report and images were incorporated into a website following the same template as the previous assessment. Additional banners were created to lend consistency to the new conglomeration of webpages. Finally, photographs of the paper iPhone prototype, replete with tea-inducted damage were also added.

The webpages and their constituent files will hopefully be uploaded by the 03 October.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
25 September 2007 @ 06:32 pm
September 25, 2007  
No iPhone for you Australia…

Compiled feedback from various users. Several users found the simplistic design beneficial, especially in concerns with screen real estate. The Photoshop inspired design was also appreciated by many users.

Many users appeared to experience the same negative flaws in the interface design, including diminutive icons that were difficult to distinguish and a lack of canvas area. Various solutions were proposed, the most attractive being a form of dynamic menus and tabs that will hide themselves when not in use. This will be the most radical change implemented into the interface design.

A new interface design was also sketched out today. Work on creating the design and screen mock ups of each menu will be carried out tomorrow. The report was also written today, although implementing it into a website has not yet been accomplished.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
13 September 2007 @ 11:46 am
September 13, 2007  
The webpages for the first Iteration of the DECO1200 project were uploaded today. The pages had to be rewritten to use the correct images and navigation menu. A link was added to the DECO1200 page to this blog. Spelling and formatting errors on the pages were tweaked and adjusted, and the php statements to include the navigation menu was added. I am quite certain now that I will continue to use php for the website rather than xhtml.

The prototyped images were also re-sized and linked correctly. This increased the ease of navigation and aesthetic qualities of the page. Of the most concern however, was the tendency of the list tags to break the border around the text. This was addressed by placing a non-breaking space before each paragraph to indent it and italicizing the topic text. This solution was actually more readable than the previous use of listing the paragraphs.

Finally, the index.html page now redirects to the index.php page. This removes the need for users to click on the 'Enter' link in order to access the site.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
08 September 2007 @ 03:49 pm
September 8, 2007  
The first iteration website was completed today. The design idea was further refined, clarified and expanded upon. Further elaboration was made upon the intentions and capabilities of the program, as well as other programs on which the functionality of the program is based.

A scale screen design was produced, in accordance to the height to width ratios of the iPhone. The MSN interface was removed from the initial prototype so that the entire interface utilized a common theme. These designs were imported into a cardboard cutout iPhone and printed so that they may be used tested at a later date.

The interviews and surveys were collected and organized, the information contained within strained and refined into a coherent, usable state. I also realized that many of the individuals interviewed were of a more... unsavory disposition, and subsequently, some of their rather acerbic comments were removed. The information was compiled to follow a particular question-and-response format.

All the information was converted into html and placed into their respective webpages. An additional banner was made to link the main DECO1200 page to this blog. These changes will hopefully be uploaded and implemented by September 11. I also produced a paper iPhone with my screen mock ups attached. This was partly for the novelty value and also for assist more practical tests at a later stage.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
31 August 2007 @ 11:54 am
August 31, 2007  
The presentation went badly and I was forced to ad-lib much of the speaking segments. I do not anticipate a high mark for that particular assessment...

Work on the webpage has been slow, laborious and exasperating. Much of my time has been spent tweaking small segments of code and working on adjusting the banners and buttons correctly. Additionally, I have been struggling to implement a php element that will embed a separate webpage into the main page. This will remove the need to edit every page should a change be made to the main menu. Unfortunately, the code does not appear to work in the slightest, despite numerous attempts to fix the problem.

The matter will require further deliberation. I will also need to populate the pages with actual information and remove the dummy, placeholder text.

That is all.
-S
 
Leave a comment
 
20 August 2007 @ 08:00 pm
August 20, 2007  
The design presentation was completed today. I believe now that I had a solid idea to work upon, and appropriate background knowledge and research into the project. I consider the program to be both practical and achievable, and believe I will be able to construct a low-end prototype within the next specified time frame.

More surveys were conducted, with results suggesting a particular trend in the practicality of a graphics editor on a small screen, such as an iPhone. A decision was made to develop the program towards a more casual orientation, as opposed to a professional market, as I was able to find little experience, evidence or opinion as pertaining to the professional usage of a shared white board program.

Additionally, further research suggests that iPhone usage makes you bald and wizened.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
17 August 2007 @ 11:08 am
August 17, 2007  

The attempt to convert my previous html website into xhtml has met with less than satisfactory results. In essence, this means that it looks like shit, and it's not my fault. The problem will be addressed, most likely by simply obtaining a new website template.

Some attempts to collect user data for the shared graphics editor program have begun. Although responses to the survey have proved somewhat inadequate, I am confident that they will either be sufficient, or I will be capable of proceeding with the minimal feedback I have received.

Further expansions on the shared editor include the substitution of text based communication, for audio based communication. This decision was made under the basis that a simultaneous communications medium would be more convenient, particularly in regards to the iPhone's lack of screen real estate. Ergo, the logical progression would be audio based real time communications. 

This has arisen due to user feedback concerning the feasibility of 'talking vs texting.'
Other issues raised by the feedback so far include the necessary components of a graphics editor, such as layers and basic brush type tools and manipulators, against features deemed largely unnecessary and superfluous such as brush history, healing brush and slices, as well as the lack of online support and compatible programs for mobile phones. The issue concerning the small size and lack of screen real estate was also expressed as a concern in some participants of the survey.

It will be necessary to address all of these issues to some degree before continuing.

That is all.

-S

 
Leave a comment
 
03 August 2007 @ 11:03 am
August 3, 2007  
Following the 'throwing' theme proposed by the previous iBrick, I have a new software proposition; the iScam. Simply put, iScam is a technological marvel, perpetually collecting and archiving information on all the lastest Internet scams, before signing you up for all of them at once. Then, it cancels your mortgage payments, shreds your utility bills and mails your tax records to the ATO. Because if you're going to throw away your money on an iPhone, you may as well throw away all of it...


Another idea, is an expansion upon the previous stylus proposal. Further application of the stylus would include a real time, multi user graphics editor. Similiar in style to the Pictochat feature of the Nintendo DS, the multi user stylus program would utilize the iPhone's web connectivity functions, as well as the local connectivity such as BlueTooth, to allow iPhone users to collaborate using the graphics editor on a single canvas, in real time, rather than concurrently, as is available using Pictochat, thus transcending the regular boundaries put into place by generic textual or graphical Internet communications media. 

The graphics editor would also utilize the greater precision of the stylus and the iPhone touch screen, as well as the accelerometers to correct the screen alignment to either landscape or portrait, according to how the phone is held. The camera could also be integrated into the program, allowing users to also exchange photos instantaneously.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
02 August 2007 @ 11:42 am
August 2, 2007  
Perhaps an iBrick weapon (a blunt throwing weapon that utilizes the accelerometers to make corrections for subsequent throws) isn't a particularly upstanding idea; both morally and practically. Perhaps an alternative direction of thought is required...

A new school of ideas has transpired from reading a relatively inspid HowStuffWorks article on the iPhone; the iPhone is incompatible with a stylus. This may be a considerable impediment to users who have grown accustomed to using a PDA or Handheld PC. Futhermore, it limits the iPhone's use in regards to note taking and drawing. An application that modifies the input from the touchscreen would allow users to use a stylus to input information such as quick notes, thoughts or sketches, allowing the device to find practical application in a more corporate or design oriented fashion.

Simple, yet both effective and practical. This shall require further research into the iPhone touch screen, as well as handheld PCs and touch screens in general.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
30 July 2007 @ 07:15 pm
July 30, 2007  
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

This is a test post.

This asinine concept of blogging to record documentation for the DECO1200 course is, unfortunately, obligatory. What could possibly necessitate the need to publicly record the design process is beyond me.  Regardless, the matter is beyond my control, and if the subject should require such a course of action, then I have little choice but to oblige.

I do know what sort of program would be construed as useful for an IPhone. Perhaps an application that allows the phone to perform functions similar to a handheld PC. Or perhaps I could just throw it at someone. Although the practicality of the latter option seems rather dubious at best.

In regards to blogging, I intend to use the livejournal in an ad hoc fashion until I can return my website into some semblance of working order. Hosting the blog and website within my own webspace will presumably (and hopefully) allow me greater control over both entities.

That is all.

-S
 
Leave a comment
 
 
 

Advertisement

Customize